Sporting Kansas City has a quick turnaround as the team prepares to face off against FC Dallas at Children’s Mercy Park on Wednesday night. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT and will be to stream on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV in English and Spanish. The match will also be available on the radio locally on Sports Radio 810 WHB (English) and La Grande 1340 AM (Spanish).
1. LOOKING TO KEEP POSITIVE RUN GOING
Sporting Kansas City is set to play back-to-back home matches for the first time this season in MLS play when the team hosts FC Dallas at Children’s Mercy Park on Wednesday night. Sporting are in the midst of a stretch that will see the team play six of eight matches at home - starting with Sunday’s 4-1 home win over the Portland Timbers - though this week will prove to be a challenge with a Sunday-Wednesday-Saturday turnaround across three matches.
Sporting are 3-1-1 in the month of May, slowly righting the ship following a 0-7-3 start to the 2023 campaign. Sporting is now just three points out of the ninth and final postseason spot in the Western Conference.
Sporting’s comeback win on Sunday marked the team’s first come-from-behind victory in the MLS regular season since prevailing 2-1 at CF Montreal on July 9, 2022 and their first comeback home win in the regular season since prevailing 2-1 against LAFC on June 26, 2021.
After starting the season scoring just three goals in their opening 10 matches, Sporting has now scored 10 in their last five. Sporting’s 10 goals in May are tied for the second most in MLS, only trailing Nashville’s 11, while the team’s 10 points earned are the fifth most in MLS behind Philadelphia (13), Nashville (13), Cincinnati (12) and Charlotte (12).
2. TAKING DOWN THE TEXANS
Sporting Kansas City remains at home this Wednesday when the team plays host to FC Dallas at Children’s Mercy Park looking to build on the club’s positive momentum from the month of May, where the club has gone 3-1-1 in MLS play.
Sporting faced off against FC Dallas in the third week of the 2023 campaign, falling to a 2-1 defeat. Daniel Salloi scored Sporting’s first goal of the season to give the visitors an early lead, but a stunning strike from Alan Velasco brought Dallas level. Sporting spurned a golden opportunity to retake the lead as first Willy Agada saw his penalty saved before Erik Thommy had his re-take saved by Maarten Paes, allowing Dallas to snatch all three points through Jesus Ferreira’s late goal.
Sporting last hosted FC Dallas in MLS play on April 30, 2022, playing out a 2-2 draw. Johnny Russell fired the hosts in front from the penalty spot before Velasco’s free kick brought the two sides level and Ferreira curled home a second for the visitors before halftime. Salloi salvaged a point for Sporting with a smartly taken equalizer as the game entered the closing stages.
Sporting trails the all-time series against FC Dallas 27-30-14, including a 15-12-9 mark at Children’s Mercy Park. Sporting’s recent home form against Dallas has been poor, as the team has not won against the Texans at CMP since Aug. 19, 2017.
3. SALLOI SCORES CLUB RECORD GAME-WINNER
Sporting Kansas City forward Daniel Salloi continued his solid start to the season with the game-winner in Sunday afternoon’s 4-1 victory over the Portland Timbers at Children’s Mercy Park.
Salloi’s game-winner was his 14th in the regular season during his Sporting career and puts him alone atop the club’s game-winning goals charts, breaking a tie with Sporting Legend Preki and Dom Dwyer, who both sit on 13.
Salloi has now scored or assisted on eight of Sporting’s 16 goals this season in all competitions (4 goals, 4 assists) in 2023. Since the start of May, Salloi has two goals and two assists helping the team go 3-1-1 in MLS play and slowly recover from the club’s slow start to the campaign.
Salloi, who was named to the MLS Team of the Matchday for Sunday’s performance, has made 189 appearances for the club in all competitions, tallying 52 goals and 29 assists.
4. THOMMY ROUNDING INTO TOP FORM
Sporting Kansas City Designated Player Erik Thommy continues to go from strength to strength during the month of May, scoring a stunning equalizer in the 4-1 victory over the Portland Timbers at Children’s Mercy Park on Sunday afternoon.
After starting the season with zero goals and assists through 10 matches, Thommy has exploded as Sporting has gone 3-1-1 during the month of May, tallying two goals and two assists in four starts, while the team has gone 3-0-1 in his four starts in May.
Thommy received a pass from Marinos Tzionis down the right wing and dribbled from the corner flag all the way to a central channel 25 yards from goal before unleashing a brilliant strike on his weaker left foot that flew past Aljaz Ivacic in the Portland goal.
The goal is up for MLS Goal of the Matchday, while Thommy was also rewarded for his performance with a spot on the bench of the MLS Team of the Matchday.
5. FULLBACKS COMBINE FOR GAME-WINNING ASSIST
Sporting Kansas City fullbacks Tim Leibold and Graham Zusi combined to devastating effect to set up Daniel Salloi’s game-winning goal in the 4-1 victory over the Portland Timbers at Children’s Mercy Park on Sunday afternoon.
Both players entered the match as substitutes and combined brilliantly in the 66th minute when Leibold picked out Zusi with a perfect cross-field switch before the Sporting icon whipped a low cross into the path of Salloi who slotted home what would be the eventual game-winning goal, making the score 2-1.
The assist was the first of Leibold’s Sporting career, having recorded over 40 assists from left back during his career in Germany. Zusi’s assist was his 90th in all competitions for Sporting and his 29th game-winning assists in the regular season - placing him in a tie for sixth in MLS history, while also tied with Seattle’s Nico Lodeiro for the most among active MLS players.
